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Commit. Have Faith. Hang On.

We had a great time playing on the lake #alldayeveryday for Memorial Day weekend. There was plenty of adventure to go around between jumping off cliffs, riding tubes, and jet skiing (is that really a word?) I had this moment as we were headed back to the dock after a long day on the water. I was driving the Wave Runner and the light of the sunset was dancing between leaves on the shore, sparkling on the water. It was chaotic as I was fighting the wake of several large boats also enjoying the beautiful weekend on the lake. But it was also strangely calm all by myself with only the water sprays and my thoughts.

I recalled the day before when we conquered the cliffs. Ethan took a little time to overcome his fears - completely understandable. His little 7 year old body was standing at least 4 times his height staring down at the water below the jagged rocks. I tried to encourage him from below. "It's ok bubs! Trust me! It's ok to be scared. Being brave doesn't mean you don't have fears. It means you push through them to overcome it." Of course he didn't have to jump. But I could tell in his eyes he really really wanted to. And he had done it before on a different trip. So dad stood at the top and mom stayed at the bottom and we waited. Eventually he made the jump, holding on to his life jacket for dear life. And then he made it again. There was a switch he had to make in his brain. Commit. Have Faith. Hang On.

Earlier that day I decided I wanted to ski. My sisters and I used to be pros. Ok not really but we sure thought we were. We would ski, all three of us, behind my dad's suped up pontoon boat crossing our ropes and trading places. Not so young anymore, I heard my brother in law say "I've never seen anyone ski off this boat." Challenge accepted. I knew I couldn't NOT get up on those skis. So I made my dad get out all the gear (I think he rather enjoyed it) and hopped in the water. Sitting in the water, skis up and rope in front, I made a choice. I'm not letting go. The boat sped up and the rope was gone. So close. He circled around and I got set up again. This time I popped up out of the water. Yes! Commit. Have Faith. Hang On.

Did you ever go tubing as a kid? It's not really as fun as a grown up because...well...it just hurts when you're old! But as a kid you see that tube as a challenge. How much can I take without getting thrown off? Isn't that the whole point of tubing? The boys love the challenge and they don't even mind skidding across the water on their backs as they roll off from a hard turn. And they always go back for more. They are committed to staying on the tube as long as they can. Commit. Have Faith. Hang On.

Back on that Wave Runner at the end of the day I hung on tight because I had to keep up with the boat. We had ventured out pretty far away from the dock and it was a long way back. I found that the slower I went, the harder it was to contend with the waves. When I maintained a higher speed I was able to bounce on top of the waves instead of diving into them. I had to Commit. Have Faith. Hang On.

You probably can see where I'm heading with this. That light twinkling through the trees was giving me the feels. The whole weekend could be a giant metaphor for life. Hang with me here - I have deep thoughts when I finally get time to myself - even when hurtling over big wake at 40 miles an hour across a big lake. Everything we want and desire comes down to these three things. Commit. Have Faith. Hang On. Rewards are waiting for us. Something different and good is waiting for us. That fear will someday be replaced with joy, accomplishment, peace and happiness. We only have to commit, have faith, and hang on.

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